Token Description & Project Background

Orion is a liquidity aggregator. It provides a hub for accessing traditional, centrally run exchanges, as well as decentralized exchanges (DEXs).

ORN is Orion’s native token. It is used to pay trading fees, receive staking rewards and facilitate network governance, the protocol’s whitepaper explained. The ORN token launched in July 2020. 

The protocol works to scrape pricing data from an array of leading exchanges to find the best deal on a given trade.

Traders use the Orion Terminal, which leverages the protocol’s proprietary order matching engine, to execute orders at the lowest cost.

All trades on the network are fulfilled via Orion’s decentralized network of brokers.

Brokers maintain trading accounts across a range of centralized and decentralized exchanges to fulfill orders on behalf of users. The protocol’s proprietary Orion Broker Software ensures brokers never assume direct control of the trader’s funds, Messari said.

The protocol requires that brokers stake ORN to execute trades on the network. The more ORN a broker stakes, the more orders they can fulfill. For their efforts, brokers are compensated with tokenized rewards. Non-brokers also can stake ORN for a cut of trading fees generated by the network.

In addition to liquidity aggregation, Orion provides its own non-custodial peer-to-peer asset bridge and a development toolkit for independent projects to launch their own DEX.

Orion Protocol was co-founded by Alexey Koloskov (CEO) & Kal Ali (COO), and was launched in 2020. 

Kolsokov entered the crypto space in 2016 as Chief Architect and Creator of the Waves DEX (now waves.exchange). Previously, he created software for international banks including Deutsche Bank and UniCredit. 

Risks of ORN

Like an investment in other crypto assets, there are some general risks to investing in ORN. These include:  (i) volatility risk and liquidity risk, (ii) short history risk, (iii) demand risk, (iv) forking risk, (v) code defects, (vi) regulatory risk, (vii) electronic trading risk, and (viii) cyber security risk. For additional information of these and other general risks associated with crypto assets and Uphold’s platform, please refer to the Risks Specific to Holding Digital Assets statement.

In addition to these general risks, an investment in ORN is subject to the following specific risks:

• Orion Protocol faces competition from multiple liquidity aggregators in the market. Any potential success associated with ORN depends on Orion Protocol’s continued rate of adoption.

We emphasize that this Crypto Asset Statement is not an exhaustive description or summary of all risks associated with ORN . Investors should conduct their own research and perform their own assessment before trading any crypto asset to determine the appropriate level of risk for their personal circumstances.

The ORN community and its core team are not under any legal or regulatory obligation to disclose material information to the public regarding its activities. Holders of ORN have no recourse to the ORN community, Orion Protocol’s core team, or Uphold if ORN declines in value for any reason.

Changes to applicable law may adversely affect the use, transfer, exchange, or value of any of your crypto assets, and such changes may be sudden and without notice.

Uphold’s Evaluation Process

Prior to listing ORN on the Uphold Platform, Uphold performed due diligence on ORN and determined that ORN is unlikely to be a security or derivative under relevant securities legislation. Uphold’s analysis including reviewing publicly available information on the following: 

• The creation, governance, usage, and design of ORN, including ensuring the source code is open-source, audited and peer reviewed, security, and roadmap for growth in the developer community. 
• The supply, demand, maturity, utility, and liquidity of ORN.
• Any marketing materials put forward by the ORN social team including on, Twitter, Medium blog, LinkedIn posts, Discord and Telegram channels.
• Material technical risks associated with ORN, including any code defects, security breaches and other threats concerning ORN and its supporting blockchain (such as the susceptibility to hacking and impact of forking), or the practices and protocols that apply to them.
• Legal and regulatory risks associated with ORN, including any pending, potential, or prior civil, regulatory, criminal, or enforcement action relating to the issuance, distribution, or use of ORN. 

General

Uphold has prepared this Crypto Asset Statement based on publicly available information. Although Uphold has taken steps to obtain information from apparently reliable sources, information contained in this Crypto Asset Statement may be inaccurate, incomplete or out-of-date. This overview is a starting point for you to perform your own research prior to investing in a crypto asset.

Uphold users should read the Risks Specific To Holding Digital Assets statement for additional discussion of general risks associated with crypto assets made available through the Uphold platform.  

Canadian residents, please note that Uphold has filed an application for registration in certain Canadian jurisdictions but has not yet obtained registration. Until such time as Uphold obtains registration, Uphold has agreed to abide by the terms of an undertaking available at the following link. Please also review the Uphold Canada – Crypto Risk Statement for additional discussion of general risks associated with the crypto assets made available through Uphold Platform. Please be aware that statutory rights of action for damages or rescission in section 130.1 of the Securities Act (Ontario) and, if applicable, similar statutory rights under securities legislation in the other provinces and territories of Canada do not apply in respect of this Crypto Asset Statement or other disclosures on the Uphold website and Risks Specific To Holding Digital Assets statement. 

Last updated on June 21, 2023.